Wednesday, February 17, 2016

I made Britain from what I saw,
Sanding paint, breathing toxic dust.
It shaped before me by chance hand,
Stubborn remains of what had been.
And its edges, coloured and ragged,
Jutted from land into a sea
Of cold, clean, sand-smooth, grey plaster.

And then the island shape was gone,
Cleansed from sight, like imaginings.
And I painted anew, slow, white,
Deliberate strokes, spread even,
Equally flat, smooth edge to smooth.
And what I created as God,
King, painter, was a plain, white wall.

I wondered then, my labours done,
If this new land, formed above dust,
Perfect, Jerusalem Maybe,
Was the space we might occupy,
If one day, all that makes us real,
Different and original,
Is allowed forever to pass.

Thursday, May 28, 2015

It is enough, perhaps, that you are near;You bring a moist caress, a seeming sweat,And even lovers loved learn to forgetThose other touches they once held so dear.But November, my love, believe, sincere,That it is you, your dusk, your always wetThat pains me most, once gone, ensures regret,And makes of festive dates an empty cheer.So, ninth month in name, eleventh in timeMay you always remain, embrace with chill;And if your weeks should pass, your days should endLeave something of your cold, your damp sublime,That mortals, such as I, might live untilYou come again, return to me, my friend.

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About Me

Padraig graduated from University College Dublin with a BA (Hons), English and Philosophy. Having obtained his teaching qualification from Durham University, he completed an MA at the Institute for Education, University of London. There, he also completed the first three years of a doctorate in new technologies, before turning his attention to professional development. He achieved his NPQH (National Professional Qualification in Headship) in 2005. He spent twenty years as a teacher of English, ten as a Senior Manager, in an inner-London secondary school. His specialism was research, publicity and communication, writing promotional material and financial bids. He has presented to local, regional, national, and international audiences. In June 2011, Padraig used his professional experience to establish himself as a full-time writer. He has recently completed his third novel - The Ordinary Tale of Captain Love; and is in the process of moving to Mevagissey, Cornwall, where he will open a bookshop - Pilchard Books - with his wife, Caroline.